Michael Jackson Funded Thriller Out of His Own Pocket

Oct 30, 2026

Michael Jackson Funded Thriller Out of His Own Pocket

3 days ago 44:07

Show notes

CBS wouldn't pay for Thriller. Michael Jackson funded it himself and turned a music video into a 14-minute horror film that changed the industry forever. Rello and Cunda break down the 1983 short film that redefined what a music video could be: John Landis getting hired off American Werewolf in London, Rick Baker's 20-person makeup team putting dancers in prosthetics for five hours a day, Deborah Landis designing the red jacket so Michael would pop against the fog, and Vincent Price's narration that terrified an entire generation of kids who loved Michael Jackson but couldn't make it through his own video. Plus: the financing workaround that paid for the whole thing, Jennifer Beals turning down both Thriller and Purple Rain, Ola Ray in her own words, Mos Def hiding in the 1996 Ghosts short film, and how Offset rebuilt Thriller shot-for-shot to announce he'd left Migos. Trick-or-treat war stories from Pittsburgh included.

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